Idea Exchange

Started as an international day of observation in 1998, November 13th marks World Kindness Day. It is a day that recognizes small acts of generosity to large scale efforts and our Mutt-i-grees program can drive acts of kindness. Encouraging students across the globe, to cultivate kindness and compassion will bolster their confidence and show - Read more

When you think of a Mutt-i-gree, an adorable rescue dog or cat probably comes to mind. But have you ever considered that a stuffed animal could be an adequate substitute for teaching empathy and compassion?While increasing numbers of schools are adopting school dogs as part of the Mutt-i-grees Curriculum, one school district is making a - Read more

Each year, many children — particularly those from low-income backgrounds — lose as much as three months of reading skills during the summer. Known as the “summer slide,” this learning loss is cumulative and can leave some children up to three years behind their peers by the end of fifth grade. In Arkansas, educators - Read more

We love seeing Mutt-i-gree Puppet in action! He had a blast helping students in Mrs. Kayla Moore's class at Sallie Cone Preschool Center in Conway, AR create "D" dog art while discussing decision-making as part of lessons from the Dealing with Decisions theme in the Mutt-i-grees Curriculum.

Students and teachers across the country have integrated song and dance into their Mutt-i-grees Curriculum. Here are a few examples, feel free to adopt these songs for your students. Or, perhaps they will inspire you to write your own?

Students and teachers at South Side School (AR) campus have created a Mutt-i-grees® Reading Room! Second grade students come once a week to read to Tripp, the school’s resident teaching Mutt-i-gree®. Students are so excited to get one-on-one time with Tripp and look forward to reading to him. The school also uses their Mutt-i-grees® Reading - Read more

Finding Feelings, the second theme in the Mutt-i-grees® Curriculum, teaches children to understand and label their own emotions and the emotions of others. Before children can begin to figure out how others might be feeling, they have to be attuned to their own feelings. Adults, too, need to be aware, not only of the - Read more

How well do you know yourself? Self-awareness is the first step in social and emotional learning. Although we often focus on getting to know our students and their families and, in the Mutt-i-grees® Curriculum, on enhancing students’ self-awareness, it’s important to take the time to make sure we get to know ourselves! Gaining awareness - Read more

Encouraging Empathy is the core of the Mutt-i-grees® Curriculum; the preceding two themes set the foundation for developing empathy, and the themes that follow -- Cultivating Cooperation and Dealing With Decisions -- build on this skill. Although known as a social skill, empathy is critical, not only to effective relationships, but also to academic - Read more

The following are some activities you can do to make a difference in the lives of Mutt-i-grees. Remember to ask for your parent or guardian’s permission (and assistance, if needed). Make cat toys from brightly colored yarn, and donate them to your local shelter or rescue group (check out our Pinterest page for ideas). Use - Read more